Tripods for supporting and steadying image recording devices such as photographic, video and movie cameras have been known. More recently, portable steadying devices that can be mounted or attached to a camera and/or worn on the body have been known. Such portable devices typically provide a tensile member that can be lengthened and pulled tautly by the user to help steady the camera. However, many of such prior devices are adapted to be attached to the camera in only one configuration, limiting the orientation of the camera to, for example, the landscape orientation. Thus, if the camera is used in the portrait orientation, these devices are not as useful and can even be damaged with the tensile member being tangled, twisted and weakened. Moreover, many of these prior devices that allow the user to step on a distal end of the tensile member provide no alternatives in the event contact with the ground or the user's shoe is undesirable such as when the ground or shoe is dirty or wet. Furthermore, many of these prior devices provided limited, if any, locking mechanism controlling the extension and/or retraction of the tensile member for purposes of facilitating storing, deployment and adjustment of the tensile member.
Accordingly, it is desirable that a camera-steadying device provides a housing that allows the camera to be used in either the landscape or portrait orientation without damage or premature wear and tear of the tensile member. It is also desirable that the device allows different means by which the deployed tensile member can be anchored. It is also desirable that the device allows varied control over the extension and retraction of the tensile member for storing, deploying and adjusting the deployed length.